PHOENIX -- Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head two years
ago Tuesday by a mentally ill gunman in a rampage that briefly renewed
the debate about gun control in the U.S.

As Arizona and the nation
pause to mark the anniversary of the shooting, the gun debate is an
even more prominent part of the national political conversation
following the mass killing at a Connecticut school.

Giffords and
husband Mark Kelly visited Newtown, Conn., last week and called for
greater gun control efforts, and they are discussing a new initiative in
an interview airing Tuesday on ABC News. Details were not made public,
but it's clear from Mark Kelly's comments after recent mass shootings
that he and Giffords want to become a prominent voice for gun control
efforts.

The
network offered a preview of the interview Monday. Kelly described a
meeting with a father of a Connecticut victim in which he "just about
lost it" after the parent showed him a picture of his child.

When
asked what can be said after a mass shooting kills children in a
classroom, Giffords offered up a one-word response: "Enough."

Tucson
will mark the anniversary by ringing bells across the city at the
moment that Jared Lee Loughner opened fire at a supermarket where
Giffords was meeting with constituents.

But even on a day of remembrance, residents won't be able to escape the gun debate.

City
Councilman Steve Kozachik has organized a gun turn-in program at a
local police station Tuesday for people who have decided they no longer
want weapons in their homes. He's hoping it helps bring added pressure
as Congress and Arizona's Legislature come back into session to "keep
the conversation" alive.

People giving up their guns will receive
$50 gift cards from Safeway - the grocery store chain where Giffords was
shot in the parking lot. The grocer contributed $1,000 of the nearly
$10,000 Kozachik raised.

He said that as the shooting fades from
the public's mind, issues like controlling the sale of large capacity
magazines and keeping guns from the mentally ill need attention.

The
event has angered local gun-rights advocates, including an outgoing
state senator who plans to gather outside the station and offer people
cash for guns instead.

"They're stealing it - stealing it," said
Frank Antenori, a Republican who was defeated in a congressional primary
bid last year. "Can you name me one firearm in working condition that's
worth $50 or less?"

Antenori and Kozachik accused each other of
acting out of political motivations. Antenori said the councilman was
sullying both the Tucson and Connecticut school shooting victims by the
timing of the buyback. Kozachik said the outgoing legislator was just
trying to keep his name in the news and remain relevant.

Tucson
residents held events over the weekend to mark the anniversary of the
Saturday morning when Loughner opened fire with a pistol with a 30-round
magazine that he emptied in just 40 seconds.

Rep. Ron Barber,
then a Giffords aide, was shot in the thigh and cheek, and went on to
replace his boss in Congress. He supports an outright ban on
high-capacity magazines and a new federal assault weapons ban while
acknowledging there are millions of both already in circulation that
will remain there.

"There's no way that those are going to be
taken or collected - there's no way that's possible," Barber said
Monday. "But if we can move forward toward controlling the accessibility
or access to those magazines or assault rifles we can go a long way to
minimizing or possibly preventing future tragedies."

Barber plans
to mark the moment of the shooting at a private gathering with staff and
family members. He will also visit a hospital to thank doctors who
treated him and other victims and attend an evening prayer service.

Barber
also is pushing for better mental health care and early intervention
into school bullying, which he said can lead to serious mental health
issues.

"I think it's a very complicated issue and no one or two
or even three steps are going to address it or get rid of mass shooting
in the future," Barber said.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, a Republican
who vetoed GOP-sponsored bills twice in two years that would have
allowed guns on school campuses and in public buildings, said Monday
she's expecting more legislation in the wake of the Connecticut
shooting, but she offered no suggestions.

"It will be something
that I'm sure will be addressed in the Legislature and my ears are all
open, and I'm certainly anxious if there is a solution that we get it
done," she said.

Loughner pleaded guilty in the Tucson shooting in November and was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences plus 140 years.